Trying to Find the In-Between
by crystalswordEnthusiast
Summary: "Because you're living a lie! You're a criminal, but you don't want to be. Why do you do it? For fun? Is living in fear fun to you? Do you enjoy living a life on the run?" In a second he was right in front of the Mexican boy, standing toe to toe with him. Jaime could hear the desperation in his voice, and saw the pleading look in his eyes. "Jaime you have so much power,..."


A/N: remember that time i decided to plan out an AU where Jaime joined the REACH to protect Milagro but couldn't find a way out, and once he did he became a super classy thief, and Bart was a superhero that was constantly sent to stop him and somewhere along the line they had accidentally fallen for each other ans started dating? no? well, it's midnight and i wrote it, oops.

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It really was the perfect heist, a feat no one had achieved before. He was going to steal the Crown Jewels. He had it all planned out, and he'd been waiting for months for the right moment to strike, and he had been relived when it had finally prevented itself. Half the city, including the queen herself, would be attending se awards show in downtown London, giving him perfect access to the jewels. So long as things went according to plan he'd have some of the most valuable items in the world in his possession.

The thief, otherwise known at the Blue Beetle (and not known as Jaime), looked up at the museum which stood proudly before him in all its old, English, glory, before placing his plan into action. Without a sound, he took off into the night sky, toward the top of the building. He landed quietly on the roof, and had skillfully avoided the left side, before he made his way over to the air vent. After he fiddled with his armor for a moment, he let out a quiet, triumphant "Aha!" as he found the drill setting and quickly began unscrewing the bolts.

He pulled off the lid, and moved it to the side, before peering down into the vast darkness below the new, impromptu entrance. His stomach flopped, and he can't help but smile at the familiar rush of feelings. Without a second glance, he dropped through the hole, letting the adrenaline take over.

Oh how he loved this feeling. The thrill of attempting a heist was somewhat of an added bonus on the sweet reward of safety it promised him, though it hadn't always been a source of pleasure for him. Once, it had been something he dreaded, but did out of only necessity. Now, while it was still necessary, it was almost enjoyable, if he pretended he wasn't committing an outright felon, he could almost pretend he was enjoying himself in a game.

Nobody really knew why he did it, although they all seemed to have many theories. To the media, he was a kleptomaniac with a need for a thrill, to the police, he was a cocky menace to society with a superiority complex, to the heroes, he was nothing more than a clinically insane villain that became too bored with the world. None of these, however, came close to the truth of why he did, which was a simple, three syllable word: Milagro.

Everything he did, everything he took, everyone he hurt, he did it for her, to protect her. He knew it was wrong, that somewhere along the line he had crossed over from protecting her from the bad guys, and becoming one of the bad guys she needed protecting from, but he was in too deep now. What could he do? There was no escape.

He had been a young boy, only fourteen when the scarab had attached itself to his back, and that was when everything went wrong. The REACH came soon after, looking for their precious invention, and were none too pleased to find it stuck to the back of some earth meat that refused to use it other than to stop petty crimes. They had been merciless, instead of negotiating, they had chosen to murder his parents while he, Milagro, and Tye were at the park, leaving behind only a small, message to either surrender and become a part of the reach, or let his sister suffer the same fate as his parents.

They had arrived home, to find their parents lying in a pool of their own blood, spilled from their throats like a faucet that had been left on for too long. That was when Jaime knew thing's would never be normal again, that he couldn't brush the scarab under the rug and ignore it anymore, something had to be done.

After that he made his choice. He'd have to surrender, for Milagro. They had moved in with Tye, just until Jaime could find a job to support them, and Jaime spent his nights out playing puppet for the REACH, going in and clearing a place for the real robbers, playing as an inside man, clearing the way for the "big guys". Eventually they had him become one the "big guys", and made him rob a small, privately owned convenience store that had refused to stock up REACH soda. It was a warning, to show the people that they could try to refuse, but that in the end it was futile. Jaime had felt nothing as he did it, because he was doing it to keep Milagro, who was sleeping soundly in her bed at the time, safe. He was doing this to get enough money to take her far away from El Paso and the soiled memories their old house now contained, and take her away to a quiet town where they could start over.

After that the crimes had escalated slowly, and he had earned a small street reputation, but nothing too big to draw media attention, until the day they had him pull the ultimate heist that would put his name on the list for good: a band robbery. But not just any bank, Blüdhaven's finest, the second biggest bank in the state, sixth in the county!

After that there was no going back, but the guilt had begun to seed itself into the back of his mind, until, after a year of robbing and injuring people half to death, it had become unbearable. He had quit the REACH, by blowing up one of their spacecrafts and everyone in it, save for the Ambassador and Scientist who had managed to escape, and he quickly earned himself another target on his back.

Since then he had been forced to go into hiding with Milagro, dropping our of school to get a full time job to afford living in a nice neighborhood that would send her to a good school.

He stole now, not for the fun, or because he was insane, but because he needed to throw the REACH off his trail. Steal from China one week, and then England the next and venture off to Paraguay two days later and they wouldn't know where to look, which meant Milagro was safe.

He was untraceable, even to the heroes which were becoming somewhat of a hindrance, and that was just the way he needed it. The heroes couldn't have any evidence that could somehow reveal that underneath the armor it was Jaime Reyes. He sold himself off as a cynical, boy, laughing at the world and stealing priceless artifacts to show them that he could. He borrowed things, like the Emperor or China's robe, or the Queen of England's crown, and sent them back a few days later, and the world assumed it was because he was a cocky big shot, trying to prove a point, and that was the way it needed to stay.

The heroes, had been trying to "reach out" to him lately. They offered him their protection, and tried to away him to the side of the good. They envisioned him as some sort of lost anti-hero, trying to find a place and make a name for himself in the world. If only they knew the truth. That he so desperately wanted to accept their offer and help them save kids that would end up like himself, but couldn't when he had one little girl that meant more than anything to him to protect. If only he could meet the heroes halfway, and switch sides. If only switching sides would be so easy. If they could truly protect him, and wipe his slate clean, and accept him as a hero. But it was just a dream. There was no way to wipe out the felonies he had committed, and there was no use in trying. Life didn't just hand out fresh starts like that.

He shook his head, ridding himself of the slightly depressing thoughts as he came to a hover just above the ground at the end of the drop, and took a moment to check his watch.

12:30. As if one queue, the dim lights that illuminated the hallway suddenly shut off. Perfect. The power outage he had set up had gone off at exactly the right time, which was something that never happened for him. Now he just had to hurry before time ran out, or before some on point guard noticed and turned the power back on. That would definitely complicate things

He landed quietly, and switched the armors lenses to night vision, before walking down the hall. He knew it was cheating, and it gave him an unfair advantage in this little "game", but really it was cheating him of any fun when the museum hired imbeciles to guard their priceless works of art. Besides, the room that the jewels were in was just down the hall, and he wasn't too fond of groping along the hallway, grabbing at the wall for handles. It would only prolong the job, and he needed to be back before Milagro woke up to prepare for school.

The sudden beam of a flashlight lit the hallway ahead and he quickly ducked into a crevice in the wall beside him. He bit the inside of his cheek as the beam from the greasy looking, slightly overweight rent-a-cop's light flashes on the toe of his foot, and he was thankful the armor was smart enough to camouflage his feet.

The oblivious guard continued on his way, and Jaime let out a breath he hadn't been aware he was holding. He howls back the noise building in the back of his throat which was a mix between a chuckle and a groan of annoyance. The security guards here were pretty idiotic considering this museum housed some of the most valuable jewels in the world. You'd expect at least a bit of brains, this was way too easy.

He quickly took off down the hall, stopping in front of the grand door to his destination. He'd stood outside of it many times in the past few evenings- on evenings where Milagro was at soccer practice or studying with a friend-examining the large handles and the intricate wood working designs, but it was different now. He wasn't a tourist that had strayed and separated from the tour group right now.

Now he was the Blue Beetle, the famous traitor of the REACH, world's best museum thief, the mysterious foe that stole from museums in the dead of night and left nothing but a calling card with a blue beetle. The thief that wasn't really a thief at all. Now it was real, and there was a risk, his life, and boy did he love risks, especially when the stakes were so high.

He switched through the armors many settings before settling on a lock picking tool. After making sure the guard from earlier had turned the corner, and after having the armor scan the floor and confirm the other two guards on duty were nowhere near enough to hear him, he quickly set to work picking the lock. After a bit of jiggling, he heard the familiar click of the door being unlocked, music to his ears. He almost felt like the night was going too smoothly, and something would happen soon, though he quickly pushed it down. No need to insult the universe by being suspicious with a change of luck.

He pushed open the heavy doors to the room, and casually strolled in, pretending for just a moment that he owned the place. He walked up to the large case and took a moment to admire the prize it held (even after all the things he stole he was still a little starstruck, he was only a sixteen year old boy after all). He pretended, that just for a moment he was a successful dentist like he'd originally planned to be, and this was a gift for Milagro he had bought with his own, hard-earned money. But just like all dreams, it was fleeting, and just like a butterfly, it was gone as quickly as it was spotted, escaping just out of reach. He sighed and buckled down, it was time for him to get down to business.

He knew the glass wasn't actually held down by anything, but just picking it up and taking the jewels almost felt like cheating. It was _too_ easy. He switched back to his canon once more, flipping through the settings before settling on the sonic lazer. He pointed the beam at the large case, and began to make a circle the size of his head. Once he was finished, he wasted no time in switching to a suction cup and lifting away the glass.

He stared at the jewels for a moment, because really, for a kid like him that grew up with little and now being a teenager that struggled with next to nothing, this was a bit of a starstruck moment, and being able to breathe on the Crown Jewels was a very, very big deal.

Finally, he reached in and grabbed one, and nearly sighed at the sound of the small clank it made against the armor. He held it in his hand as though it were the most precious item in the world. He rolled it over in his palm carefully, as though he was dealing with a porcelain doll, before he opened a small crevice in the chest of his armor to store the jewels. He placed it inside carefully, and reached towards the case to take another, when a gust of wind and a loud, slightly raspy voice cut through the silence.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Blue Beetle."

He froze for a moment, hand hesitating above the before drawing his hand back, and he moved away from the case. He smiled, and felt his heart rate quicken slightly, before he turned around to face the owner of the voice with a flourish. "Well if it isn't my old friend, Impulse." He smiled and bowed. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit."

"You know why I'm here Jaime."

"Impulse, please don't address me so formally in public." He feigned annoyance, before smiling again, unable to hide his excitement at seeing his long time friend. "Here to take me in? Although, I don't see why. I'm not really stealing anything, seeing as I give it back within the week."

"You may not be keeping the things you steal, but you break in and you steal them all the same and that's wrong. I'm here to stop you, you can't get away with this."

Jaime rolled his eyes, the scarab heating his skin to show its own anger. "Where's the rest of your little ragtag, reject team?" He looked around, and furrowed his brow. "What, did they just send you?"

Impulse crossed his arms over his chest. "It's just me. The rest of the team are out on other more important missions."

"More important missions? Oh I'm hurt." Jaime put his hand up over his heart. "Am I really considered so little of a threat to you all that they only sent one hero, and Impulse of all of them?" He teased lightly, and shook his head before he leaned back against the case. "I'm so offended."

"Listen," Impulse took a threatening step closer, and Jaime fought to ignore the scarabs warning. "I'm not here to play this little game with you today, okay? We do this all the time and its getting old. It has to stop."

"But Bart I was just starting to have a little fun." He laughed and retracted the face plate of his armor, before he turned back to the case. He grabbed a few of the remaining jewels and stuffing them inside the armor, next to the first one. "I'd love to stay and chat, I really would, but I've got to go and admire these beauty's before I have to unfortunately mail them back."

"Jaime, I won't let you get away with it this time. I can't keep letting you go, the Team, they're starting to get suspicious." Impulse sighed and peeled back his mask, revealing his messy hair and slightly sweaty face. "You can't, we can't keep doing this. It's dangerous, and not right."

"Why not?" Jaime asked, mostly to give the speedster a hard time.

"Because! Because you're living a lie! You're a criminal, but you don'y want to be. Why do you do it? For fun? Is living in fear fun to you? Do you enjoy living a life on the run?" In a second he was right in front of the Mexican boy, standing toe to toe with him. Jaime could hear the desperation in his voice, and saw the pleading look in his eyes. "Jaime you have so much power, you and that scarab are unstoppable, so why not use it for good? You could do great things Jaime. You could help a lot of people. You need to crash this mode you're on."

Jaime reverted back, getting into the defensive. Bart was the only person he trusted with his story, but even that trust could only run so deep. Bart didn't know the half of it, and he probably never would. Oh how he wanted to simply agree and come back to join Bart and the rest of heroes. How he wanted to stand by his side and help him live a life in the light. But he couldn't, not if it meant putting Milagro into that light and into danger. "I already do great things."

"Stealing priceless artifacts isn't great Jaime."

"I think it's pretty spectacular. Not many people can say the snuck into a museum like this one at night and left with the Crown Jewels resting in front of their heart."

Bart looked at his with wide, pleading eyes. "Jaime, please, you can't ke-"

Before Bart could finished what he had to say, Jaime reached forward and took hold of his collar. He dragged the speedster forward, before crashing their lips together. It was messy, and rough, and it was really just a thought a battle of tongues and teeth and a need for dominance. Jaime began pushing the speedster, backwards, towards a nearby pillar, and the shorter boy happily complied.

They were up against the wall, Jaime trapping Bart, and soon the kiss evened out. It became softer, and the rough bites turned into gentle nips and flicks of the tongue. Jaime brought the hand not holding onto Bart's think waist up to cup the other boys cheek, and Bart's hands lost themselves in Jaime's dark, messy, curls.

Jaime took the initiative, and pushed further by grinding his armor hips forward and downward. The effect was instantaneous, and had Bart moaning into his mouth. Bart eagerly bucked forward, and Jaime held back a chuckle at the overeager reaction. Bart moved forward again, faster, brushing his growing erection againts Jaime's armor. The idea of the younger boy getting hard because of him, because of this, and the eager reaction he received were enough to get him hard behind the armor.

Befoe either of them could be any more daring and take it any further, they were brought back to reality by the shrieking sound of an alarm?

They broke apart, and Jaime enjoyed the flushed face of the boy before him, looking sinfully desirable as he was covered in sweat, his hair sticking in every direction and Jaime almost let out an uncharacteristic whine because now he wanted nothing more than to take this further.

He noticed Bart's wide eyes and the flashing red light and only then did he hear the alarm. Right. The alarm. The outage he caused couldn't last forever, and it was all fixed now, triggering the motion sensors back on. They were still at the museum, they were still on the job, and Impulse was still supposed to be stopping the Blue Beetle from taking the jewels.

By the time Bart was able to say anything, Jaime was already pulling out his card and sticking it down the front of the other boys spandex pants. He pulled away after that, and Bart opened his mouth to complain, but Jaime leaned in before he could speak to kiss his puffy lips.

"I'd love to stay and continue this with you, really, I would, and I probably could stay to finish it off with the incompetence of the security around here, but I really should get going, got a little sister to take care of." Jaime smirked as he began walking backwards. "Besides, you'll probably need some time to get rid of the little problem you're having with Bart Jr." He cast a pointed look at Bart's groin, and purposefully locked his lips, before he was flying up and out of the roof, revealing a holographic panel.

Jaime risked one last glance down Bart, and he laughed at the other boys half shocked half, dazed expression, and his dilated pupils, before he pulled the armor back over his face and shot off, disappearing into the night sky. He chuckled quietly to himself as he let the scarab take over flight.

Their little game, and the strange romance the Blue Beetle and Impulse had built up would have to end quickly, and badly no doubt, however, he knew that the thing between Bart Allen and Jaime Reyes wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. They could do this, they would just have to find a middle ground.

With his new sense of hope, he flew back to El Paso, to get a few hours of sleep before he'd have to be up to make Milagro's lunch and then head to work. For now, he'd focus on Milagro, and during their next meeting, without the masks, they'd work on finding the dividing line between work and relationships.


End file.
